The Gift Giveris one of those books that make me want to do the Advent countdown with books idea that is all over Pinterest. The one where you wrap up 25 books then unwrap them one at a time to count down to the 25th. I say every year that I’m going to try it. Yet, every year, I wait too late to find enough books to do it. My mission every year is to get it down before Thanksgiving for the family we choose to adopt. What I need to do is work on it all year so it gets done.

The story begins with a boy being disappointed that Santa is only leaving him three gifts . He feels that he’s been good enough this year that he deserves more. While that sentiment is certainly selfish and wreaks of entitlement, it’s a common and developmentally appropriate feeling among children who still believe in Santa. It’s important to recognize that it’s developmentally appropriate for you child to feel that way. They will certainly grow out of that mentality as they grow older and you continue to mold their character. This book does a fantastic job of turning the focus back to Jesus.

Santa recounts the story of the Gospel in a thought provoking way that vividly albeit gently reminds children that the holiday is not all about him. The story breathes life into the true Christmas story for small children or children trying to understand Santa and Jesus at the same time. Santa remembers how he became Santa but gives all the credit to Jesus the entire time. The book weaves the story of Jesus and Santa together in such a way that children will see them as being intertwined from beginning to end. The illustrations are breathtakingly beautiful. You will keep turning the page not only for the riveting story but to see the next illustration as well. This book is destined to become a treasured family heirloom.

5 ways to rehydrate your young athlete naturally came about as I was searching for ways to keep my amazing young dancer hydrated without all the yucky dyes , chemicals and sugar. Being healthy is just as important to a budding dancer as spending hours learning technique. A healthy as well as hydrated body gives her more stamina to finish her lessons strong.

This post is sponsored by Body Armor. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Add in the fact that we live in the desert and hydration becomes an important topic for everyone in the house. We use these same tips from dance when our family is outside hiking or enjoying the beautiful weather. Just like I don’t want my dancer ingesting yucky stuff, I don’t want my child with autism ingesting it either. It’s just as important to me that his diet stay clean and healthy as it is that hers is as well.

5 Ways To Hydrate Your Young Athlete Naturally

1.Water packed fruit and veggies is a great way to add natural hydration that is not in drink form. Watermelon, cantelope or strawberries are all filled with water that helps with hydration. Cucumbers, celery and tomatoes are as well. I put several containers of these chopped up for easy snacking. She thinks I am getting her to eat when in fact I am trying to keep her hydrated.

2.Replenishing electrolytes is essential. Plain water just isn’t going to cut it when she’s been sweating it out for hours. Plain water actually makes her woozy as it furthers the imbalance of electrolytes. BodyArmor has worked amazingly for this action. She loves the taste. I love the naturalness.

BODYARMOR is a premium sports drink with potassium-packed electrolytes, coconut water and vitamins – and has no artificial flavors or sweeteners

BODYARMOR is a better alternative to traditional sports drinks, because it contains no artificial flavors or sweeteners and has potassium packed electrolytes, vitamins and coconut water.

3. Smoothies. These can easily be made with fruits and veggies along with milk or using the BodyArmor flavors above. I like to freeze a few bottles in ice cube trays to add to smoothies especially if it’s going to be a long dance day so she will need extra electrolytes.

4. Soups or broth. If the weather is cool then I will pack her a thermos with all her snacks. I will add her favorite soup or just some homemade broth. When all else fails, a trip to Panera for broccoli cheese soup works every time.

5. Homemade popsicles or frozen fruit. Grapes are easy to freeze as well as watermelon. Sometimes it simply tastes better frozen. I can use a popsicle mold to pour in the BodyArmor in addition to fruit pieces like strawberries and blueberries. These work well as pre dance snacks to keep her at optimum hydration.

What is your favorite way to keep your young athlete hydrated naturally?

Check out BodyArmor at Publix, Kroger ,Sam’s Club or Amazon but don’t forget your coupon!

A honest review of Hello Fresh by a gluten free family . I was a bit hesitant to agree to review this box as I was uncertain whether or not my family could eat anything in it. We are gluten free as well as peanut free after all. This particular food service company sends you the ingredients as well as recipes for 3 complete meals for 2 or 4 people depending on the box you choose. I reluctantly agreed to the 2 person box so as to not have to throw out gobs of food if we indeed could not eat it. Boy was I pleasantly surprised at the outcome. Each recipe easily fed my family of 4 , sometimes 5. They have 3 different plans to choose from: Classic, veggie and family

After selecting which plan as well as number of meals you would like, you get to choose from 7 recipes. This was a game changer for us as one of the 3 original recipes was not a good match for us. I was able to easily trade the pasta dish for a rice one as well as see the ingredients for the others. I did not change it unless it was clearly not going to fit our dietary restrictions. The website makes this so easy by listing under each recipe if it is gluten , nut or dairy free. I love that feature.

Madison made the recipes from start to finish. She has minimal cooking experience but we are working diligently on it. This should testify to how easy the recipes were to follow as well as the fact that all the ingredients were packaged for her. She didn’t need anything from the pantry to sub gluten free. Everything was in the bag to make the recipe. I was happy with that scenario. It was easy to find the ingredients on their website and I didn’t need to sub out anything since the recipe was marked gluten free. Beyond delicious! Oh and done in under 30 minutes.

The recipe steps were written clearly as well as pictured if you happen to be visual people like everyone in my family. A person will minimal culinary skills could have easily made it with no assistance. It would make a great activity to build positive episodic memories with independent life skills

Now for the info. It’s pricey. We couldn’t do this on a weekly basis. $69 for a box with 3 meals is not going to cut it here in Autismland. Was it worth it? Absolutely! Just out of our price range is all. This would be a great option for an stay at home date night or for a fun family activity one month but I can’t envision forking out that kind of money on a weekly basis. We have to afford autism after all. Not that I think the value isn’t there for the box. For our family this would be a luxury item.

All in all, it’s a great company with a great product! The concept is innovative. It’s a great way to have a fun time with the kids as well as try some new recipes. It would be a much appreciated gift for a new mom or someone returning home from the hospital. Our family enjoyed it very much.

How to have date night dinner in without cooking seems like a an oxymoron. I know you’re thinking that I’m going to suggest pizza or something. Give me a little more credit than that for date night. Date night is important for your marriage. I also realize that getting a babysitter is near impossible for parents of children with autism. Here’s another idea for date night dinner without cooking or leaving your home.

This is a sponsored post. All opinions are 100 % mine.

Bootler is a search engine for food delivery currently based out of Chicago that allows you to order from area restaurants. It shows you the delivery fee from each service along with the wait time. There are a ton of choices along the lines of Chinese, American. pizza, Mexican and sandwich. You can compare delivery fees , times as well as any minimums you may need to meet. There can be as much as a 45 minute discrepancy in delivery services . With Bootler you will be looking at an epic burger delivery in no time with minimal frustration.

You could easily order dinner while putting the kids to bed . By the time all the festivities, bedtime shenanigans are completed, your hot and ready meal is at your door. Then you can eat adult food that doesn’t involve chicken nuggets while having a conversation with each other. Boom! Date night done.

Bootler is currently only in Chicago with plans to branch out to other cities. While I don’t live near Chicago, we like to travel with the children throughout the year. Having this option while in a bigger city will be a lifesaver when we want to stay in the hotel but need a meal. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for them.

About Us

Call me Penny, wife to Michael as well as mom to Logan who has autism and Madison who is pursuing a dance career.
Based on my own personal and often difficult experiences with autism, I hope to educate families of children with autism on how to navigate their world from pre diagnosis to adulthood.